Strangest interview questions unveiled

The strangest interview questions of 2010 have been compiled in a list by Glassdoor, proving that even the best sales recruitment candidates need to be ready for the unexpected.

Among the choice quotes attributed to some of the planet's biggest employers are 'how many basketballs could you fit in this room' (Google) and 'how do you weigh an elephant without using a weighing machine?' (IBM).

In many cases, companies asked by Glassdoor refused to reveal when and where the questions were asked, but no company denied asking them either, simply stating they were "not part of the standard interview questions".

However, many of these questions – including Capital One's 'rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10 how weird you are' – were likely not designed for the candidates to work out the answer, but rather to think outside the box and consider what the employer is trying to ascertain from their response.

The number one strangest interview question of 2010 stretches even the boundaries of existentialism, however, with Goldman reportedly asking one set of candidates: "If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out?"

Taryn Grossman, a senior recruiter at Siemens Energy Sector, recently told the Recruiter that recruitment agencies help to ensure candidates are fully briefed on the role and screened properly before going for an interview – something many candidates would fail to do on their own.

For CV hints and interview advice together with one of the largest information portals available to UK sales jobseekers visit www.aaronwallis.co.uk.

Posted by Nikki Barrister

Filed: 26-05-2011